Damian Lillard Trade Rumors: Blazers Want 4 1sts, 2 'Quality Players' amid Heat Buzz

If the Portland Trail Blazers are going to trade franchise icon Damian Lillard, they reportedly want quite the haul in return.

According to Aaron Fentress of the Oregonian, the Western Conference team is looking for something "in the neighborhood of four first-round picks and two quality players. But accomplishing that could require adding a third team to the equation."

At this point, the Lillard situation is a continuous circle of updates and comments that doesn't seem to have an end in sight.

Fentress went as far as to call it a "standoff" with the point guard only wanting to go to the Miami Heat and Portland not pleased that its leverage in what figures to be such a foundational trade is undercut by that desire.

Yet Fentress noted Lillard's agent, Aaron Goodwin, "acknowledged" he has informed other teams outside of Miami that Lillard would be unhappy playing for them.

"I don't think another team would do a deal like that knowing everything that's going on," Goodwin said. "But if they do, then they don't know Dame."

So, the circle continues.

At this point, one thing is clear. Miami would be an even bigger threat to win the championship if it did complete a trade for the seven-time All-Star. It has been to two NBA Finals and three Eastern Conference Finals during the past four seasons, has arguably the best coach in the league in Erik Spoelstra, and has the Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo combination already in place.

Lillard will be 33 years old next season, but he showed few signs of slowing down in 2022-23 when he averaged 32.2 points and 7.3 assists per game. Playing alongside Butler and Adebayo would give him even more room to operate and force opposing defenses into something of a pick-your-poison situation.

But Miami may need to get a third team involved if it is going to make that a reality, especially given how much the Trail Blazers are looking for in return.